If you are a landlord, or if you include residential leasing as part of your real estate practice, please be aware of an important upcoming new law as well as reminders for laws enacted in earlier years:
1. New- Lease Summary Form Required April 1, 2026: Effective April 1, 2026, Connecticut law requires attaching a specific summary form entitled “Standardized Rental Terms Summary Form” as the first page of any new or renewal lease agreement for residential dwellings. That form was developed by the Connecticut Department of Housing (DOH). You can find it on the DOH site at this link and it is being added to the CTR Forms library for April 1, 2026. Note: penalties for failure to provide this form include loss of one month’s rent.
2. Reminder- Late Fees: As noticed to you in earlier communications and as a reminder, effective as of October 1, 2023, the maximum late fee that landlords may charge is the lesser of 1) five dollars per day, up to a maximum of fifty dollars, or 2) five percent of the delinquent rent payment or, in the case of rent paid in whole or in part by a governmental or charitable entity, five percent of the tenant’s share of the delinquent rent payment. More than one late fee may not be assessed upon a delinquent rent payment, regardless of how long the rent remains unpaid. CTR is making this addition to the lease agreement in our CTR Forms library.
3. Reminder- Pre-Occupancy Walk-Through: As a reminder, as of January 1, 2024, after a rental agreement is signed but before a tenant takes occupancy, landlords are required to offer tenants a pre-occupancy walk-through. If a tenant opts for a walk-through, the landlord must use the pre-occupancy walk-through checklist prepared by DOH that can be found at this link.
4. Reminder- E&O Insurance: If you have an E&O insurance policy for your real estate practice be sure to check if rental real estate is included in your policy or not - as it often isn't. Insurance coverage is often an important consideration for what types of real estate may be offered by a company to consumers.
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